Aeroplane



Patented Apr. 5, 1932 UNIT STATES PATENT ortica ARTHUR v. xrNsnL, orLos ANGELES. CALIFORNIA, AssIeNoR or ONE-HALF` To CLARENCE K. WATTS, or Losl ANGELES, CALIFORNIA AERorLANE Application filed April 24,

This invention relates to aeroplanes. It is a well known fact in aviation that when an aeroplane wing is moving through the air, the

. downwardly inclined surface on the upper 5, side of the wing develops a partial vacuum above the wing which assist the buoying action of the air under the wingV to maintain the wing aloft; rlhe general object ofthis invention is to provide means to cooperate with an aeroplane wing of this type which will assist in developing a partial vacuum over the wing, thereby increasing the lifting power of a wing ofl a given area. A further object of the invention is to provide an aeroplane wing with means operating to deter lateral atmospheric air currents from flowing inwardly at the ends Aof the wing in such a way as to lill the partial-vac- .y uum which is created over the wing by its advance; in other words, one of my objects is to give an aeroplane wing a construction which will tendto augment the partial vacf uum created over the wing. In accomplishing the above objects in the preferred embodiment of the invention provide a special construction of wing having its upper surface of such a form as will tend to enhance the development of a partial vacuum over the wing in a plurality of zonesv or areas. Preferably in my invention, 'I provide means vfor developing air blasts forward of these areas or Zones tending to eX- clude the inrush of atmospheric air to them, and one of the objects ofthe invention is to construct the air ducts in such a waythat substantially the same air pressurewill be developed at the dierent points wherethe air blasts are generated. f.

A further object of the inventionis to provide simple means for regulating the amount of air discharged through the air blasts, and also to improve the general construction of aeroplane wings of this general type;

.Further objects of the invention will appear hereinafter.

The invention consists in the novel parts and combination of parts 'to be-described hereinafter, all of which contribute to produce an efficient aeroplane.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is 1929.', serial No. 357,610.

described in the following specification,` while the broad scope of the invention is pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a Vertical section taken in a frontV and rear direction throughthe wing of an aeroplane embodying my invention and show? ing a portion of the fuselage in sideA elevation, broken away,the mounting for the central traction propeller beingl also broken away.

Figure 2 is a plan of the areoplane shownl in Figure 1 upon a reduced scale, with the rear portion of the fuselage broken away and with a portion of the foward edge of the wing broken away and shown partially in cross-section. y

`Figure 3 is a vertical section upon an en+ larged scale taken in a front and rear direc tion and further illustrating details of the inf vention. This view is taken at an intermediate point in the wing with respect to its front and rear edges. i

Figure t. is a view similar to Figure l, but showing only the forward part of the fuselage and wing, the rear porti on being broken away. This view illustrates another embodiment lof the invention in which a blower may be employed of a centrifugal type vinstead of a blower of open fan type illustrated in Figure 1.

In applying my invent-ionin' the construction of an aeroplane it should be understood that the wing is constructed so that the upper surface of the wing has its greatest elevation toward or at the forward edge of `the wing and from this point the Aupper surface of the win-g inclines downwardly toward the rear edge of the win-g, when in Hight.

While the invention can be applied to a wing of ordinary cross-section, near the forward edge ofthe wing, I prefer to give :the

wing aspecial cross-section operating to increase the development ,of a partial vacuum over thev wing as it advances. vAccording to my invention, adjacent the forward edge of the Wing and on its upper side, 1 provide means for projecting an air blast in an -upward and rearward direction, the eect of which is to increase the `development tof a floV partial vacuum back of this point and over the wing.

I shall now describe the invention as applied to an aeroplane wing of novel type having a special construction cooperating with the air blast to increase the lifting power of the wing. y

Referring particularly to Figures l to 3, 1 represents the wing of the aeroplane, which extends over and issecured to a fuselage 2, the said fuselage being located on the usual central line of the wing with respect to the front and rear direction. i

Near the forward edge 3 of the wing, which edge is rounded in profile as indicated by the dotted line 4 in- Figure 1, the most elevated point 5 of the wing is located. From this point-the upper surface 6 of the wing extends downwardly in aninclined direction toward the rear edge vor trailing edge 7 of the wing. According to my invention, I provide means for delivering an air blast at the point 8 near the point 5 of greatest elevation of the upper surface of the wing. In the present instance the wing is composedof three sections, namely, a forward section 9, an intermediate section 10 and a rear section 11, these sections being disposed one behind the other, as shown in Figure 1. The intermediate section 10 hasV substantially the same outlinein cross-section v as the leading section 9, being provided with 'extend' in a front and any upper surface that has its most elevated point 12 disposed forwardly and presenting an inclined'rearwar'd extension 13 that inclines downwardly toward the rear. The rear section 11 is similarly provided with an upper surface that has its most elevated. point 14 disposed toward the front and has a'rearwardly and downwardly inclining portion 15 that forms the rear part of theentire wing.

The inclined upper surfaces of these sections and the curved forward edges of the same may be mounted on truss frames 16 that ure 1). A

Any suitable means may be employed for projecting air blasts upwardly and rearwardly at the points 8, 12 and 14. In the present instance I prefer to provide the wing with long slots or ports 17, 18 and 19 at these points.V These slots or ports communicate Y with air ducts 20, 21 and 22 which correspond to the three sections of the wing and extend longitudinally of the sections. These ducts 20,21 and 22 are all connected together by staggered tubular connections 23 that extend in a front and rear direction (see Figure 2). These tubular connections are of sufficient size to maintain a substantial pressure of air in all of the ducts; in other words, although the air may be supplied from a blower to the forward duct20, these connections 23 are of such area in cross-section that the flow of air tothe ducts 21, 22 will be ample to mainrear plane (see Figthe wing just forwardly of air intakes 26 in the form of open mouths that present themselves to the atmosphere as the aeroplane advances. In each intake a fan 27 is located to operate as a blower and to force the air rear-` wardly in the intake'so that the air will pass Yback intol the foremost air duct 20. These intakes 26 are of considerable diameter so that the lower edge of the intake may project belowthe underface 9 of the wing. These intakes are formed of sheet metal and are of substantially conical form, being built into the forward edge 3 of the wing.

Each yfan 27 may be mounted on a tubular shaft 28 that extends rearwardly and passes through the rear wall 29 of the air duct 20,

at which point a small'motor 30 may be provided to rotate the shaft. j

f The tubular shaft 28 may mey mountedY on an inner shaft 31 -the forward end of which is attached to the center of a spider 32 formed in the front end of theintake-and.supporting the engine 33V that drives theauxiliary traction propeller 25. 4 v y Referring again to the slots 17 18 and 19, these slots incline upwardly and rearwardly from their corresponding air ducts and each slot isprovided with means Afor regulating the discharge of an air blast through the slot. In the present instance this means is in the form of a tilting vane or shutter 34 having its free edge 35' located at the point where the slot or port emerges. on theupper face of the wing. At its forward and lower edge each vane or shutter 34 is pivotally mounted on suitable brackets 36. Each vane is formed with a short arm 37 see Figure 3) for the atvtachment of controlling cords or wires 38 and 39. The cords 38 extend forwardly over tially the'same position as regards the degree of opening of the slots.

In this connection it should be understood that the cord 38 that extends forward from theforemost vane 34 Ypasses around aV guide pulley 42 (see Figure 1) and thence downwardly around aguide pulley 43, the end of the' cord being attached to the forward sideofa control lever 44. A similar cord 45 attaches to the short arm 37 of the rearmost vane and passes around guide pulleys 46 and 47, the forward end of the cord being attached to the rear edge of the lever 44. The lever 44 is mounted' so as tol cooperate with a quadrant 48 and is in convenient reach of the seat 49 for the aviator within the fuselage.

It should be noted that at the forward edges of the rear vanes 34, the vanes are rounded on a radius from the pivotal axis of the vane so as to prevent air from passing into the port over the forward edge of the vane.

Instead of taking the air for the ducts 20, 2l and 22 through the forward edge of the wing, I may provide for supplying the air to these ducts from any other point. Such construction is illustrated in Figure 4, in which 50 represents a blower driven by a motor 5l and having an air intake 52 back of the blower. rlhe air taken in through this intake passes into the blower 50, which may be of centrifugal type. From this blower a breeching 53 passes upwardly and connects to the forward air duct 54. Vhen a blower of this type is employed, the intake mouths 26 of the type illustrated in Figures l and 2 may be omitted. If desired, centrifugal blowers may be mounted in the intake mouths instead of the fans 27.

It will be noted that with this form for the upper side of the wing, the advance of the wing tends to produce a partial vacuum at three different points over the wing, namely, over the rear portion of the forward section and over the rear portion of the intermediate section, and over the rearmost section of the wing. The air blasts are projected from the wing just forward of these three points.

In order to cut olf lateral atmospheric air currents which would naturally tend to develop in such a way as to relieve the partial vacuum formed at the different points referred to on the upper side of the wing, I provide special means. In the present instance this means is in the form of an upwardly projecting baffle or flange 55 formed at each end of the wing. It will be evident that this upwardly projecting flange assists in forming the partial vacuum pockets over the wing and in this way increases the lifting power of the wing. If desired, this flange 55 may have a rear extension 56 extending all the way back to the rear edge 7 of the rear most section of the wing. j

From the above specification it will be evident that my invention includes means for increasing the natural partial vacuum that is formed above a wing as it advances in Hight.

One of the advantages of the sectional construction of the wing in combination with the transverse ducts for the air is that I give increased depth to the truss frames 16 thereby increasing the stiffness and strength of the wing.

Furthermore the tubular form of the air ducts gives -them considerable strength and this also increases the strength of the wing considered as a beam extending transversely to the axis of the fuselage.Y The increase in weight dueto the increased depthand the presence of the tubular ducts iscompensated for by the increased lifting power due to the profile of the `upper side of the wing. 1 y One rof the advantagesof my invention is that by increasing the buoyancy of the wing,

the aeroplane becomes dirigible atslower speeds and this increases the safety'in landjing because it will not be necessary tolandVv at such high speeds-as 60 miles anfhourforkr,

thereabouts, as is now necessary.

y i What Iclaim is:` Y

l. An aeroplane having a wing with a plurality of sections disposed one behind the other and extending transversely of the aeroplane, each section having an upper surface' elevated toward the forward edge oftheV aeroplane and inclining downwardly toward the trailingedge of the aeroplane, said sections having means for permitting the escape of air rearwardly and upwardly, located vaft of the most elevated point of the elevated forward portionof the inclined upper surface of each section and baille means at the ends of the wing for cutting 01T atmospheric air currents flowing in laterally from the vends of the wing. y

2. An aeroplane having a wing with a plurality of sections disposed one behind the other and extending transversely ofthe aeroplane, each section having an upper surface elevated toward the forward edge of the aeroplane and inclining downwardly toward the trailing edge of the aeroplane, said sections having means for permitting the escape of air rearwardly and upwardly, located aft ofthe most elevated point of the elevated forward portion of the inclined upper surface of each section, and an upwardly projecting flange at each end ofthe aeroplane operating to cut voutlets for regulating the escape of the air blast therethrough.

4. An aeroplane having a wing with a plurality of trussed frames extending in a fore and aft direction, said wing being formed' with three sections disposed one behind the other and extending transversely ofthe areoplane, each section havingan upper surface elevated toward the forward edge of the aeroplane and inclining downwardly toward the trailing edge of the aeroplane, the middle secvated points.

v tion of said three sections having its most elevated point slightly elevated above the most elevated point of the forward section, lateral air ducts extending respectively under the said elevatedfpoints of the saidsections, a

blower for supplying air to said air ducts` ,Y

and outlets on the upperside ofsaid ducts extending upwardly and rearwardly with Yrespect to the direction of advance ofthe aero-- plane, and emerging on the upper sides of saidupper surfaces just aft of the most ele- 5. An aeroplane having a: wing with a plurality oftrussed frames extending in a fore and aft direction, said wing being formed with three sections disposed one behind the othe'ravnd extending transversely of the aeroplane,"each 'section having an upper surface elevated toward the forward edge of the aero-- plane and inclining downwardly toward the trailing edge of the aeroplane, the middle section of saidr three sections having its Inost elevated point slightly elevated abovevthe most elevated point of the'fo'rward section, lateral airy ducts extending respectively under the said elevatedv points of the said sections, a blower for supplying air to said air duct-stand outlets on the upper side of said ducts extending Aupwardly and rearwardly with respectto the direction of advance of the aeroplane and emerging on the upper sides of said upper surfaces just aft of` the most elevated points, the said section lyingaft of the middle sectionhaving its most elevated point slightly lower than the most'elevated point of the middle section.

Signed at Los Angeles, California, this 15th day of April7 1929. l

y ARTHUR V. KINSEL. 

